Silver Screen Spirituality

Applaud Lord of the Rings. Be frightened by the Sixth Sense. Laugh at Bruce Almighty. Take offence at Dogma. Be amazed by the Matrix Trilogy. Squirm through Joan of Arcadia. Feel the emotion in Crash. Be conned by Catch Me if You Can. For many, the church and the cinema work in very different ways and therefore should never meet. When I discuss films with people, I am often met with one of two responses; one from the “world” and the other from the institutional church. The world often wonders why I am so interested and often moved by the religious imagery in movies. On the other hand, the church’s traditional response has been with a frown of disapproval; “Be in the world, not of the world. Flee from evil!”

In western culture, filmmakers are the storytellers that tell the tale of mystery and intrigue which appeal to and reflect many an individuals’ personal pilgrimage towards truth and purpose. Our culture is very spiritual; it is very “god” oriented but often has a magnet placed on it’s co-ordinates which causes a spinning pilgrimage of directionless experimentation. Film, T.V., and other performing arts are dealing with issues of God, angels, and the paranormal on a very regular basis while popular music is continuing to reflect the inner quest of the soul.

The truth is, for many, the institutional church is boring while spirituality seems exciting and mysterious. We now live in a “post-apologetic” world that rely’s heavily on experience and story. As a result, people are seeing flashes of the divine on screen which may be contributing to more soul searching then any three point sermon ever could!

Welcome to the narratives and parables of today. True to the form that Jesus displayed; some stories are straight and to the point while others require deeper probing to find the underlying meanings and realizations of God. The story of God is all around us, “The basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long hard thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes of such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being.” Romans 1:20 – The Message.

That being said, “spiritual malnutrition” is a very real threat if we as believers exclusively look for God in theatre, film, fiction, art, music, television. God has given us his divinely inspired word, and as believers, that needs to be our template of how we see his imprint on the world around us.

We often look for balance on theses issues, unfortunately, we do not serve a very balanced God! In fact, it is quite the opposite. Paul, in Galatians 5:16-26, addresses the matter of lifestyle choice/differences while also reminding us of the eternal battle of good vs. evil; life by the Spirit vs. acts of the sinful nature.

Our sinful nature caters to and feeds our corrupt desires. The activities mentioned here by Paul, (sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, and orgies), if practiced by or engaged in by believers, “disqualifies” them from the kingdom of God.

*Many of these are popular themes/issues in film, art, etc.

Life by the Spirit – As black is to white, these by-products of a spirit-filled life are to those of a sinful nature. These, (love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control), are products of a spirit directed and spirit influenced life.

*Many of these are popular themes/issues in film, art, etc.

My question then is this: What lens do you see the performing arts through? Inherent evil or simply a medium of art with many different interpretations?

How to Kill a Rabbit

Here is an interesting little convo I had with my friend Sam. He raises rabbits but is not a hippie. He was talking about some of his rabbits when he dropped the bomb that he eats them…….

Sam Whut?!? says:
the other ones are going to be tasty

Sam Whut?!? says:
hey man have you read case for Christ?

Sam Whut?!? says:
there was this one night I was contemplating stuff and was gonna drive out to cell phone range and call you to discuss things

eddie def says:
man - you should sometime
eddie def says:
you eat these rabbits??!!
eddie def says:
What the heck is wrong with you?! Your making Candace cry....

Sam Whut?!? says:
yeah rabbit is amazing
it's the most lean meat ever

Sam Whut?!? says:
killing them is kinda sketch though

eddie def says:
I read Case for Christ a bunch of years ago...

eddie def says:
how do you do it?

Sam Whut?!? says:
but once you get past it (I only have ever done one before I ever came to BC) they say it's no problem
you bop them on the head with something hard
and slit their jug
then bleed them
alive
then hang them uppside down
by the feet
slice the stomach up (without cutting the organs)

Sam Whut?!? says:
then around the "parts"
then around the feet
and peel the skin off like a sock
it's gross

Sam Whut?!? says:
the meat is so good

Sam Whut?!? says:
I was in highschool when I did the first one
I was pretty effected
I felt sick

Sam Whut?!? says:
and it took time to get over
Sam Whut?!? says:
but i have eaten rabbit for easter and stuff (ones I didn't kill) and it is amazing

Sam Whut?!? says:
so I am hoping I get over it fast when it comes time
aparantly if they wake up while you slit them their cries sound like little children skreeching


Sam Whut?!? says:
they told me that last year it happened and eveyone ran out of the house to see cause they thought is was one of the kids

Sam Whut?!? says:
it's pretty sick, even for me
(not the screaming, never head it)
Sam Whut?!? says:
heard
Sam Whut?!? says:
total blair witch

eddie def says:
yeah man

EDIT: Please do not kill rabbits.